Stapelia Coming On

After the overheated greenhouse episode I had to do a lot of chopping, repotting and triage for many of my soft plants. Thank goodness many were outdoors and dodged the bullet! This stapelia was on the floor so although it was damaged the core was salvageable and got repotted after severe trimming. It was always a weak plant and although it would bud it never made it to flower. In the new pot it has become vibrant, has two buds ready to pop and two more coming. Was purchased as S. leendertziae but the buds are not right for that. Look more like S. Gigantea to me. I should have a better idea tomorrow as they look ready to explode.

Another interesting event is that one of my epis (E. oxypetalum) is budding. It was always a spring bloomer until I fried it. Most of the plants that were badly damaged are proving remarkably resilient and are looking better every day. I still grieve for the 40 or so plants that died.

Bill

How exciting, I can't wait to see the flower.

I can't wait to see your new bloom. I am just getting into stapeliads - my husband gave me one for Valentine's Day and it has grown like crazy. So, of course, I got a couple more.

My E. oxypetalum always blooms in the fall but my daughter's always blooms in the spring (her's is a cutting from my plant).

Daisy

The bud is just starting to crack. Thought it would be quicker it was so fat.

As far as the epis go it makes me wonder what the trigger really is for them to set buds.

Thanks sunkissed and daisy for your interest!

Bill

Pic didn't load for some reason.

How exciting! How big are the blooms on the Stapelia gigantea?

I think they can be 7 - 8 inches across. And very stinky. Rockminer, let us know how well you like your plant after it blooms. 8')

It has finally opened! The flower's petals immediately recurved. Had they been spread flat the flower would be 8 inches across. Yes, Daisy, the carrion odor is there! My old nose must be within a foot to notice it but it is definitely dead...well beyond dead! The bottle flies were on it within minutes, crawling amongst the hairs and laying their eggs.

The more I read the less sure of an ID I am. S. asterias which maybe really S. hirsuta find pics that are close, if too small of a flower. There are references to a willingness to cross with S. grandiflora and that there are many hybrids out there. Sooooooo?

Anyway this has been a hoot! Thanks for looking.

Bill

I think it is S. gigantea. There seems to be a lot of variability in the flower color within that species and I don't know of any others quite that large.

That's great, whichever it is. Do I see another bud?

I suspect this is Stapelia grandiflora.

I suspect that Daisy is correct regarding the ID. I spread the flower and measured a full 8 inches across. The shape of the petals matches many of the photos of S. Gigantea as well as the size. I was leaning toward S. grandiflora myself because of color and the length of the hair but could not find any reference to flowers of this size. May be a hybrid?

Thank you for your input.

Bill

Sunkissed, Three more buds coming!

Bill

These blossoms are fun. So big and fuzzy.... and stinky. I haven't had one of these plants for several years though. I like seeing yours.

Helenchild, This has been a fun experience. Tempts me to aquire more stapeliads! Now where to put them.....?

Thanks,

Bill

Most Stapeliads are smaller than S. gigantea plus there's room for at least 40 more plants in your greenhouse. (Unless you've already filled it up...)

Bill, I understand the "where to put them" problem very well. I can quickly count about 70-80 plants here in my bedroom I recently brought in from the porch for the winter. I have many more in the den, dining and living room. I haven't taken a count in ages but use to have more. I had to stop acquiring new plants (very often) and letting the natural demise over time reduce my plant numbers. It was getting more a burden than fun. Its getting manageable again. :-) My S. gigantea would get large and gangly and make lots of huge blossoms this time of year with the cool weather. I remember the broken pieces quickly rooted too. Easy to grow.

helenchild, I'm with you on the "where to put them" dilemma. I swore while bringing all my plants in for the winter, I was done buying any more plants. Then I remembered I had several coming in the mail. Some day I'll learn. cll

cactusladylover, not to worry. You will reach a saturation point and stop buying lots of new plants. Just the occasional one which I am still guilty of but several plants aren't going to make it in from the porch this year.
Another part of the plant collection problem is they all grow! Bigger! And consequentially take up more space! Sigh.... but I must admit I like them better bigger.
Its all good really and they are just plants. A pretty harmless hobby. Enjoy!

Daisy, cactusloverlady and helenchild: Your posts are so timely for me as I did another trade run to my friends greenhouse yesterday and despite my best intentions came home with 14 new plants! I justify this by giving other friend's a couple of plants that have grown rather large over the years in order to make room.

Four new mamms for the collection, 2 euphorbias, 3 gasteris, 1 echinocereus, 1 total noid cactus, a Hoodia, a Huernia and an unknown caudiciform are awaiting attention. Most of these have been neglected for years and will require id so you will no doubt see them again! This is so much fun!

One of my greatest pleasures from (to me) my large number of species is being able to share with friends. That means learning to reproduce the plants. Of course that means making room for babies...lol...Here we go again!

And I just remembered my giant rick rack that I no longer have a place for....let's see...more cuttings to trade...!!

Bill

rockminer, You do find a great deal of treasures from your friends greenhouse. I could not resist taking several home after each visit. cll

Yes, where is Scott Bar? We are all thinking of coming for a visit.

Gee Bill, I see lots of room on that table! What are you complaining about? ;-)

Cll, My friend has a bunch more plants that I would love to bring home. Some are large so those I just drool over but many more are of manageable size so I'm sure more will follow me home!

Daisy, Far northern California. Fifteen miles from the Oregon border, 253 miles from Reno and 50 miles from the nearest supermarket! Coffee is always on...

Helen, I brought in the rest of my plants last evening so I only have a little corner left on the table. Hmm...Guess I can fit just a few more. Chuckle! !

Here's my flower of the day...Haemanthus albiflos.

Bill

Sorry, I didn't realize how out-of-focus that was until I posted it.

Cool. Mine bloomed last month (for the second time this year).

50 miles to the grocery? I would never survive (lack of planning).

Daisy

Bill I like the little Haworthia armstrongii (I think) I see on your table. I got one of those years ago and it has grown very slowly but steadily and I now have several. Its my favorite Haworthia.
I Googled Scott Bar CA and discovered you live in a very isolated but picturesque place. I hope you aren't suffering so badly from the terrible drought.

Which one is the H. armstrongii? The very light one right behind the Stapeliad?

Fifty miles from town does reqire a bit of planning, Daisy. And much frustration if one forgets an essential ingredient.

Helenchild, is that really a haworthia? The texture is very much like a gasteria and since he had this with his various other gasterias I assumed it was one also. Now will come more research. Love your adenium. I have killed a couple without ever seeing a bloom.

Bill

Bill, the one I am referring to is the small, dark green one thats second from the left in the from row.
Here is a picture.

Big problem trying to search DM plant files. I have heard it has become very dysfunctional.

I would venture that Bill's photo is a Haworthia and Helen's is a Gasteria.

Helenchild, Here is a pic of the little green one. I'm quite sure it is a gasteria. It is in a 2 inch pot so is not very big. Don't know which one yet nor does the guy who bought out the nursery so will be doing research at some point. The other one still has me wondering if it might be a haworthia despite its gasteria texture. It is in a 3 inch pot so is larger than any of my other haworthias. I found a couple of pics when I googled haworthia that are very similar in shape albeit diferent color. Guess I'll be puzzling over these for a while.

Your plant certainly has a gasteria look but an odd texture. Looks remarkably like a green tongue! I looked it up and I agree with your id. My guy has numerous haworthias so I will look for H. armstrongii. Think I might need one!

Daisy, It's still happening......The more I learn, the less I know!

Bill

Bill,

That's a Gasteria for sure. The problem with Gasteria is that you might have to settle for Gasteria sp. They are incredibly hard to tell apart.

The one Haworthia that has the stacked up leaves that sort of resemble a Gasteria (Haworthia truncata) is very different. The leaves are squashed together and blunt on the ends.

The photo that Helen borrowed from the internet (I did an image search) is labeled as Gasteria armstrongii or G. nitida var armstrongii. The accepted name (according to ThePlantList) is Gasteria nitida var armstrongii.

Haworthia armstrongii seems to be a synonym for Haworthia glauca var. herrei (you have to follow the synonym trail to arrive there).

Are we thoroughly confused yet?

Daisy

Daisy and Bill,
I am thoroughly confused. But I do think what I have is a Gasteria armstrongii after all and somewhere along the line got it mixed up with Haworthia. But no surprise there. Plant names are a problem for me and a boring one at that. I don't put a lot of effort into remembering them though sometimes I try.
Anyway am very happy to go along with the Gasteria classification. Whatever it is its one of my favorites.
Helen

Helen, Send us a photo of YOUR plant. The photo you sent before is off the internet and has been used numerous times.

Bill, has your Haemanthus albiflos opened completely yet?

Helen, nice Adenium. I was watering last night and noticed my Adenium and Pachypodium both have buds. It's a first for the Pachy. Can't wait to see the flowers.

Daisy

Nice looking plants on that table, Mr. Bill. I do agree your new plant looks just like my Gasteria, it was simply labeled "Gasteria sp.".

It can be so hard to walk away from a good find in any garden center, and especially when a friend has free plants. I have gotten better at saying, "no" especially to the succulents since I must cram them all on my front porch to avoid our heavy rainfalls.

Nice Adenium, helenchild, that is one that can take lots of rain here and doesn't have to be under cover, I attached a photo of mine.

I think I'm getting a bud on my Stapelia, hope so, I have no idea what kind it is.

Daisy, Having never collected or studied gasterias I guess I'll just dive in and try! My only one prior to this came in a two inch pot that I potted up untill it was over 3 feet in diameter with 4 foot flower stalks. I managed to freeze that one and never ventured another because of space limitations. Now that I've found small ones I'm excited to add their unique textures and colors to my collection

The Haemanthus is stretching its anthers but otherwise not changing much.

I do love to see other's plants, Helen, so please do post some!

Sunkissed, It makes me chuckle every time we talk about self control concerning plants....I have very little and am a master at rationalizing around what little I have! Love your adenium. As I've mentioned in other threads they seem to be my nemisis, never a bloom yet and several rotted very dead plants.

Thanks all for your generous comments!

Bill

Here are some pictures of my plants. I received on of these many years ago (20+) and it has slowly gotten bigger and produced side shoots. I've divided and repotted a number of times. Also you can see the damage from sunburn on one of the leaves.
I am noticing the variety of textures though most as smooth or without little bumps.
I'm very interested in input. Thanks.

Along the lines of where to put plants here is a picture of one of my dilemmas. These cactus and Euphorbias keep getting bigger despite minimal care and remaining in ridiculously small pots. I know in the ground then all get huge.
But I am still faced with the task of bringing them in for the winter. I was going to take cuttings of these and discard the majority of the plant this fall. But so far I haven't been able to do that. With the exception of the pencil plant. I did take a cutting and the rest when to compost.
They are so impressive (if you like such things) and its hard for me to cut them. Any input?

Helen,

Photo #2 is a Gasteria. Photo #1 is interesting. I think it also is a Gasteria but... It might be Haworthia truncata. It has the blunt leaves but it is growing more like a Gasteria. The positive ID would be in the flowers.

I would have a hard time cutting those huge cactus down and tossing them. I have a couple that originally were huge but pieces fell off and I rooted those. There must be somebody that would love these huge plants. Have you checked into local nurseries or public gardens? They may want them or know a private collector interested in them.

The best time to root a cactus cutting is in the spring when the cactus are actively growing. It may be tough this time of year.

Daisy